UMass Memorial names new chief executive

By Robert Weisman, Globe Staff

UMass Memorial Health Care said Wednesday it has hired Dr. Eric W. Dickson as president and chief executive, replacing the retiring John O’Brien at the helm of the largest health care system in central Massachusetts. The appointment takes effect Feb. 25.

Dickson, 46, has been serving as president of the UMass Memorial Medical Group, a 1,060-physician subsidiary of the Worcester-based health care system, and senior associate dean at the University of Massachusetts Medical School that is affiliated with its hospitals.

He graduated from Merrimack College, the University of Massachusetts Medical School, and Harvard University School of Public Health.